Cream of Broccoli Soup Recipe - Nondairy, Gluten Free

Cream of Broccoli Soup

1 large bunch of broccoli chopped (reserve choice florets for garnish)

2 large carrots, diced

1 onion, chopped

2 large stalks of celery, chopped

Saute vegetables in 2 tablespoons  olive oil (or other oil of choice).

Cover with 1 quart rich chicken broth and simmer until all vegetables are very tender. (may use vegetable stock for a vegan soup).

Mash the well cooked vegetables with a potato masher to break the vegetables down a bit.

Add the reserved florets for the final 5 minutes of cooking.

Make a roux by mixing 2 T brown rice flour and 2 T tapioca starch with 1/2 c water.  When the roux is smooth, add 2 cups unsweetened non-dairy milk of your choice (I use So Delicious Unsweetened Coconut milk, which is thick and does not add a coconut taste to the soup).

When the broccoli garnish is cooked, add the roux and stir to distribute, simmer until thickened and serve.

May add fresh grated nutmeg, parsley, or GF croutons.

This soup keeps well in the refrigerator and freezes well.

Crock Pot Pulled Pork - Two Versions

Pulled Pork is one of my favorite dishes to prepare for a crowd.  A pork shoulder is a very affordable cut of meat, and when slow cooked all day in the crock pot with a few seasonings - it is a crowd pleaser!
I make it two different ways.  Both are delicious.

Apple Seasoned Pulled Pork

1.  Sear pork shoulder on all sides in a skillet before transferring the meat to the crock pot.
2.  In the same pan, saute a large sliced onion until it is golden brown and nicely caramelized.  Pour caramelized onion over the browned shoulder in the crock pot.
3.  Add 1 sliced apple OR 1/2 cup applesauce OR 1/2 cup apple juice (any of these work well)
4.  Generously sprinkle the pork with thyme, salt and pepper.  Add a light sprinkling of rosemary leaves and oregano leaves.  Add one or two bay leaves.  Cover and cook all day. 
Serve with roasted potatoes and a green vegetable or in summer, serve with a buffet of cold salads and crusty bread.

Mexican Pulled Pork

1.  Sear pork shoulder on all sides in a skillet before transferring the meat to the crock pot.
2.  In the same pan, saute a large sliced onion until it is golden brown and nicely caramelized.  Pour caramelized onion over the browned shoulder in the crock pot.
3.  Squeeze the juice of 2 large limes over the pork and onion mixture.
4.  Stab holes in the pork with a sharp knife and insert several cloves of garlic (according to your taste).
5.  Cover and cook all day, but near the end of the cooking process, add a generous sprinkling of cumin and thyme - according to taste. 
Serve with tortillas and taco toppings for a Mexican style dinner.

Black Eyed Pea Sausage Soup

Black Eyed Pea Sausage Soup

New Year’s Luck Soup (a soup version of Hoppin’ John)

2 lb dried black eyed peas

1 lb cooked link sausage of your choice (I used a chicken sausage – Adelle’s Pineapple-Bacon)

3 quarts chicken or vegetable broth plus water

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 yellow onions, chopped

3 cups carrots, chopped

3 cups celery, chopped

6 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon black pepper

2 bay leaves

1.    Sort through black eyed peas, removing pebbles, debris, etc.   Cover black eyed peas with water – about 2” above the level of the peas in your pot.  Soak for 4 hours or overnight.

2.    Caramelize onions in olive oil, then add the other vegetables and sauté them until all are tender.

3.    Add vegetables and bay leaves to stockpot and add drained, soaked black eyed peas.  Add broth.  Add more liquid as needed to keep the peas submerged during cooking.  Simmer several hours until peas are soft. 

4.    At this point, you may wish to remove several cups of the mixture and puree in the blender to make a creamier soup base.  Return the puree to the pot and add the diced cooked sausage and Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.  Simmer 30 minutes longer, taste and adjust seasonings as needed.

5.    For my New Year’s Open House, I made this soup the day before and reheated to serve it from the crock pot.  The flavor seemed to improve the second day.

Gluten Free Turkey Pot Pie (or Chicken)

My family looks forward to the leftovers from holiday turkey dinners.  I make as much gravy as possible in order to have enough left over for pot pie.  This is such a comfort food!

Turkey Pot Pie

I make this pie with whatever I happen to have leftover.  Quantities can be varied according to preference and availability.

1.    Lightly grease a 9 x 13” baking dish

2.    Sprinkle cubed cooked turkey or chicken evenly over the bottom of the dish, along with any other cooked vegetables you may wish to add.  If you have enough to fill the pan 2/3 full, you may not need to add more vegetables.

3.    If more vegetables are needed, peel and cube carrots, parsnips, potatoes, onion, celery and add them to a 4 quart pot.  Cover with water or turkey or chicken broth and simmer for 15 minutes until tender.  If you want to add other vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, or green peas – add them for the last 5 minutes so they don’t overcook.

4.    If you have used water for cooking, drain off excess, if you have used broth, thicken it with a paste of equal parts brown rice flour and tapioca starch flower mixed with water. 

5.    Now, add whatever leftover gravy you have to the pot in which you cooked the vegetables and stir to heat it through.

6.    Pour the vegetable gravy mixture over the meat in the baking dish.

7.    Gently cover the top of the gravy, meat and vegetable mixture with a thin layer of crust (recipe below).  

8.    Bake at 400 degrees until crust is golden brown and gravy is bubbling around the edges of the pot pie.

Crust

2 cups brown rice flour

½ cup tapioca starch flour

1 tsp. xanthan gum

4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp salt

Cut in ¼ cup solid coconut oil (you can use any other solid shortening you like – even margarine is OK) until dough is crumbly – like a pie crust.

Add approximately ¾ cup water or dairy free liquid (I use coconut milk) as needed to make a firm dough.

Mix until the dough holds together, adding more liquid as needed.

Roll out between 2 sheets of waxed paper (dough is sticky)

Cut into 3” squares with a pizza cutter and use a pancake turner to transfer squares to the baking dish which is now filled with the turkey stew.  Overlap squares as needed to cover dish completely.

*Any leftovers are a treat sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon and baked on a cookie sheet.

Crockpot Antelope Stew

 Joe shot four antelope this fall in a special hunt near Worland, Wyoming.  I am cooking a lot of different dishes with antelope, but this stew was a favorite!

Antelope Stew

1 lb antelope (or venison) stew meat

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 quarts water or more as needed

1/2 cup celery, coarsly chopped

5 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 parsnips, peeled and chopped

3 white potatoes, diced

Salt and pepper

Bay leaf

Thyme leaves

1/4 cup brown rice flour for thickening

 Chop one onion and saute in a frying pan in olive oil until carmelized.  Transfer onions to crock pot.

In the same pan, brown the stew meat in small portions.  Transfer the stew meat to the crock pot.  When all the meat is browned, add chopped celery to the frying pan with a small amount of olive oil.  Saute slightly, then transfer celery to the crock pot.  Add a small amount of water to the frying pan and scrape up all the brown bits, transferring them to the crock pot.  Sprinkle stew generously with salt, pepper and add a light dusting of thyme leaves over the top.  Add a bay leaf and water to cover, then set the crock pot on to cook all day.

Midway through cooking, add carrots, parsnips, and white potatoes to the crock pot.

At this point, thoroughly mix the flour with about 1/2 cup water, and add this mixture to the stew, stirring to distribute it throughout the broth.

By the end of the day, the stew meat will be tender and the vegetables will be cooked just right.

This dish could also be cooked on the stove top - if so, plan on taking about 4 hours simmering to get the meat thoroughly cooked  and add the vegetables during the last hour of cooking.

Chicken with Apples and Tarragon Over Black Rice

This is a very simple recipe for an elegant and unusual dinner. Gluten free, of course (although you could thicken the sauce with wheat flour).  This recipe is also dairy free, soy free, and egg free.

 

Chicken Tarragon

4 large chicken breasts

garlic powder, salt and pepper

2 large tart apples

1 onion

3 stalks celery

1 teaspoon tarragon

1 cup white wine, broth, apple juice, or grape juice.  Water works OK too, but less tasty.

Brown chicken in a bit of olive oil.  Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper during browning process.  Remove chicken from pan and add vegetables and apples along with a little more olive oil.  Sautee a few minutes until onion starts to get transparent.   Sprinkle vegetables with 2 tablespoons of flour (I use rice flour, of course, but regular flour is OK, too) and mix to blend.  Add tarragon.

Return chicken to pan,  Pour over liquid and scrape up browned bits from the bottom of the pan.  Cover and simmer for another 30 to 45 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked. You may need to add water if sauce gets too thick.   Serve over rice.

Quinoa - How to Prepare It!

Quinoa is a nutritious, whole grain substitute for rice.  I like it as a side dish with fish or chicken.  I also like it for breakfast.  Quinoa is naturally gluten free and it provides all of the eight essential amino acids, creating a complete protein.   It is one of the best vegetable sources of protein.

Quinoa is an ancient traditional grain grown at 12,000 feet above sea level.   It is found in the bulk sections of health food stores - and thus - no cooking instructions!  It is easy to prepare, though, and I am going to tell you how!

How to Cook Quinoa

Rinse quinoa.  Combine 1 cup quinoa with 2 cups water or broth in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil and turn heat down to low.  Cover and cook for 15 minutes.  Turn off burner and let it sit for 5 minutes more.  Fluff with a fork and serve.  When quinoa is cooked, the grains are translucent and the white germ is visible.  This makes 4 generous servings. 

Vegan Tamale Pie - Gluten Free One Dish Meal

Vegan Tamale Pie

  Grease 9x13 cake pan.

Measure into a large saucepan:

3 cups cornmeal

6 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons cooking oil (olive, safflower, or canola)

Stir constantly over medium high heat until bubbly and thickened.

Spread ½ cornmeal mixture in the bottom of the pan.

Layer on the following ingredients as desired:

1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes

1 can corn

1 can diced green chilies

1 can black olives (sliced)

1 can pinto beans, or any other beans of your choice

Sautéed onion, garlic, green pepper

                                   

Season with chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper as desired.

Spread remaining ½ cornmeal mixture over the top. 

Sprinkle with cheese if a vegetarian version is preferred. 

Bake in 350 degree oven until heated through ( 30 minutes to 1 hour).

May be made ahead and stored in refrigerator or freezer until ready to use.

For a legume free recipe with cheese and meat see the Tamale Pie recipe here.